Sorry for the late posting of this one, readers! Psychology revision called. But it's up now, with the next chapter on it's way soon! Please enjoy.
The bar was quiet the following night, save for the occasional small chatter between pilots and the soft music droning from the old jukebox. Cipher was seated in his usual spot at the bar on the late morning of May 23rd, with Foulke next him, both sipping on pint glasses of beer while observing the dull atmosphere of the once lively place. The deaths of many pilots of the 6th Air Division had had a blow on the morale of both mercenaries and Air Force pilots likewise.
"Belka's gone too far." Foulke muttered as he spoke of his home country. "Nuclear armament development and now chemical laser weaponry? What next, orbital strategic plasma cannons?"
"This war has to be stopped." Cipher squinted as light from the morning sun lashed through the window and shone in his eyes before dimming as if on command. "Though I don't see myself as an anti-war guy by any measure seeing as this is how I make a living, this one in particular is different."
"Cipher, Foulke!?" A shout from the door and shattered the quietness like someone cracking ice with a grenade. "You're wanted in the briefing room ASAP." The technician left without an explanation, leaving the mercenaries guessing as they made their way across the paddock where the alert hangers were situated to the briefing room. Inside, sat Crow Team. P.J looked round at Cipher and Foulke as they entered and smiled before turning to face the Lieutenant General waiting to give the briefing.
"He annoys me."Foulke muttered as he sat with Cipher at the back. The flight lead just chuckled.
The lights dimmed and the Axe and Hammer logo appeared on the screen, the company that designed the computer software for the Ustio Air Force. The screen flashed and zoomed in on the combat airspace in northern Belka.
"We have discovered that the unidentified laser weapon is a long range offensive weapon codenamed 'Excalibur.'" the intelligence officer announced. "We believe it to be a Belkan anti-aircraft defence chemical laser weapon designed as a missile defence system."
The screen showed the location of the weapon, as well as four other sectors arranged in a horizontal line below it. "According to our information, the strike zone is heavily guarded by jamming facilities and multiple anti-aircraft artillery units. Your objective is to destroy Excalibur." The Lieutenant General explained. "But to do that, you must first neutralise the jamming facilities and the anti-aircraft artillery."
"Considering the importance of your target to the enemy, I'm afraid there's no way to avoid casualties from enemy resistance." He warned as he ran a hand through his short brown hair. "In light of this, we have called in reinforcements for this mission. Work together with them to achieve the mission objectives."
"At last, we get to fly together!" Ryan grinned at Cipher as they left. "I was wondering when we'd be able to go on a mission with you guys."
"Yeah, P.J wouldn't stop going on about you after the liberation of Directus!" Crow Two took the opportunity to mock the youngest member of the team, who proceeded to punch the blonde-haired pilot on the upper arm with an embarrassed smile.
"Guess we'll see you in the air." Cipher broke off from the other team and headed to his open hanger where his F-15C was being towed out ready for use. He noticed that he was already armed with four AIM-120C AMRAAMs and two AIM-9 Sidewinders but the ground crew had wheeled over a set of bombs like the ones they used securing of the Sapin supply route earlier in the war. They looked at him as if to ask him to decide between more missiles or bombs.
"Bombs." He confirmed. "This mission will primarily be AGM."
With his wingman armed up as well, and both had conducted their pre-flight checks, the Galm Team taxied out onto the single runway at Valais Airbase. With a roar, they took off ahead of the Crow Team who were just beginning to taxi. Cipher looked down upon them from the skies as they lifted off and without further ado, headed for Tauberg where the deadly laser weapon was waiting...
"This is Sputnik One." The flight lead of a four-aircraft Yuktobanian F-16C Fighting Falcon squadron reported in. "We'll support you any way we can Galm Team."
Cipher pulled away from the Osean tanker, callsign Juicebox before he replied with a click of the mike.
"Crow One to Crow Three," Ryan's voice was recognisable over the radio as he continued to poke fun at the other pilot. "How's your girlfriend, is she your first?"
"I had a girlfriend in high school!" P.J replied.
"When are you planning to buy those flowers?" Cipher could almost hear Ryan laughing as the Crow Team flight lead spoke.
"Wait around too long and another guy's gonna steal her away from you, you know." Crow Two joined in.
"This is no time to talk about my personal life!" P.J sounded defensive.
"Looks like a handful of fighters have come to the rescue." Foulke referred to the Yuktobanian pilots who were no doubt laughing at the Crow Team formed up in a finger-four formation. Cipher glanced at his radar in time to see a pillar of distortion just like the laser attacks from the last mission created. Except this one was in a beam, not a disc, and came from where the briefing had pinpointed the location of Excalibur.
"Evasive manoeuvres!" He yelled as he broke from the formation and entered a fast shallow dive west with Foulke hard on his tail. Crow Team complied and went to east. Sputnik Squadron split and went both ways but moved too slow as the blue chemical laser sliced through the tanker and two of the Yuktobanian jets.
"The tanker's been destroyed." AWACS Eagle Eye reported. "All aircraft, you're in dangerous airspace, be on the alert!"
"Here they come!" A Belkan soldier said over the radio, which Eagle Eye had intercepted. "Increase ECM output to level three!"
"I'm losing radar guidance, my missiles are useless." Cipher could hear the crackling of the radio over Foulke's transmission as the pair of F-15C Eagles dived towards the first jammer. "We'll have to rely on bombs and guns."
"Galm Team, take out Excalibur's defences and then the cannon itself." Eagle Eye summed up the mission.
Cipher saw the large grey structure, sheltered by large hills to the north. It looked like a large button sticking out from the green landscape, and was flanked by two warehouses. He lined his fighter up with the jammer and when he thought he was in range, opened fire with his Vulcan cannon and peppered the building with bullets. The structure caught fire and exploded shortly after Cipher passed low and fast over it.
His missile warning system came to life with a high pitched wail and Cipher instinctively popped flares and broke hard. "Manpads." he strained against the g's he loaded onto his jet as he evaded the shoulder launched surface to air missile. He looked around to see Foulke strafe the warehouse where the shot had come from.
"Here comes an attack, all planes break!" The loitering AWACS shouted. The Galm Team applied afterburners and quickly vacated the laser's firing path before the deadly blue beam burst through the distant mist with a rumble.
"I want more power!" A commander at Excalibur ordered.
"Sir, the cooling systems can't..."
"I don't care, just do it!"
Cipher grinned to himself. Maybe the laser would just overheat and explode, saving them all the trouble of disabling it manually. His sharp eyes spied out the second jammer and he came off the afterburners to line up for his shot.
"Yo buddy, I've got this one." Foulke came from above him and Cipher pulled away from his attack run. "Galm Two, pickle!" The bomb landed squarely in the centre of the jammer, blasting a large hole in the centre. The explosion also knocked out two AA guns parked near the jammer before they could open fire.
"Nice job." Cipher praised his wingman as he formed back up.
"Don't hold back this time!" Crow Two encouraged his team-mates. "Destroy everything you can!"
"I know we can do this if the Galm Team flies with us!" P.J added.
"Pixy to Crow Three, if you get shot down crash where I can't see." Foulke said drily.
"Umm...roger..." P.J sounded uncertain.
Cipher looked at his radar and missile guidance systems, but they was still fuzzy. The Crow Team must be yet to take out the third and fourth jammers. With a sigh, he turned towards them.
"They're going to fire the laser, Cipher pull out!" Foulke exclaimed as the Belkan mercenary accelerated past the flight lead with afterburners on full. Deafened, Cipher did the same and narrowly missed the attack.
"All jammers are destroyed, now take out the laser weapon." AWACS Eagle Eye ordered.
With the radar, radio and missile guidance systems back online, the formation of seven aircraft turned towards the laser cannon,splitting and reforming whenever an attack came which seemed to be every three to five minutes.
"Increase power levels to maximum!" The Excalibur firing controller ordered.
"Dammit, there's no way through!" Foulke cursed as the giant towering structure came into view. "It's surrounded by railway artillery! Give me some orders!"
Cipher's radar identified a pair of incoming Belkan fighters scrambled to protect the superweapon. "Keep the skies clear." He said before flipping his fighter upside down and diving towards the first of the heavy weapons. The first of four large anti-aircraft weapon sat on the back of a large railway carriage at least twenty meters long. It slowly rotated and raised the barrel to aim at Cipher and fired a thin laser beam which Cipher rolled over and counter-attacked with gunfire, shredding the fragile weapon system.
"He's too fast and low, I can't aim the weapon!" A worker on one of the railway tactical laser systems cried.
"Way to go Galm One, smashing up the enemy's firepower!" Crow Two whooped.
Cipher followed a wide circle around the perimeter of Excalibur, quickly eliminating the remaining three AA weapons. Then as he climbed to attack the main laser atop the pillar, he watched in awe as the weapon powered up with a low whine. Purple sparks of electricity jolted from the structure and a blinding white light shone from the top of the laser before the laser exploded from the top off towards the formation of Allied Forces fighters.
"Galm Two, give me a sitrep!" He demanded.
"All Belkan fighters down." Foulke replied. "We lost Sputnik Three to the laser attack, I'm beginning my attack on the power generaters."
Around the laser weapon, lay four large buildings the size of a small power station. Crow Team and Foulke simultaneously launched an attack on each of them while Cipher and Sputnik One tried to hit the tip of the laser with gunfire.
"Sputnik One, do you have anything we can use against this?" Cipher asked as he came in for his third unsuccessful attack run.
"I'll try the AGM-65, but I can't promise anything." The older Yuktobanian replied in his deep voice as he turned away to line up for a shot. Cipher clicked the mike before banking sharply to avoid another laser shot. He looked down to witness the destruction of the power stations.
"Power generator one, down." Crow One said.
"There goes the second." Foulke said. "Things are looking pretty good."
"Woohoo, third station down!" That was P.J.
"Confirmation of all power plants destroyed." Crow Two finished.
Cipher grinned. "Sputnik One, now's your chance!"
"Roger that, Sputnik One rifle!"
In the distance, Cipher saw the missile ignite and shoot towards the laser. It impacted with a loud bang and shards of glass and metal were send flying in many different directions. Sputnik One flew past at great speed with a roar.
"Great job, now the laser is no longer a threat!" Eagle Eye congratulated.
"...one second...got it!"
Cipher frowned. That sounded like a Belkan pilot. He checked his radar but it was blank. "Galm Two, I'm being jammed."
"Likewise." Foulke replied. "I'll check it out up top." he pulled up above the clouds and out of sight. A few seconds later, he confirmed Cipher's thoughts. "EA-6 Prowler. I've got him." Cipher watched the clouds and then saw the tumbling wreck of the Belkan jet spewing fire. Four parachutes appeared soon after.
"We've got a shot, I think we're gonna do this!" P.J was excited.
Cipher pulled hard on the flight stick and swung his F-15C round as hard as he could. "Beginning attack run." He said as he lined up with the crippled laser cannon. Switching to his bombs, the HUD showed the trajectory his weapon would take and Cipher waited until the last possible moment when the HUD signalled when the bombs would hit the structure before releasing both free-fall explosives and pulling away with a call of "Galm One, weapons release!" The resulting explosion was enough to cause a chain reaction within the structure and it leaned over dangerously. Smaller explosions shook the ground while the Ustio mercenaries and the lone Yuktobanian F-16C Fighting Falcon circled and cheered.
"Wooohooo!" Crow Two cried.
"The sword has been pulled from the stone!" Sputnik One exclaimed. "It was Ustio's flight lead who did it!"
"Nice job!" The AWACS congratulated. "The laser weapon has been destroyed, we can even see it from here. P.J, don't get too excited and crash buddy!"
"Yeah, now that's what I call teamwork!" The young mercenary replied.
Cipher looked over, with Foulke on his wing, at the laser just as it snapped in half and the tip crashed into the ground with a screech.
"You hear that Cipher?" Foulke said calmly. "That's the sweet sound of victory! Not bad for a couple of misfits, huh?"
"Not bad at all." Cipher smiled. "Lets go home."
"Roger that." Both Eagles banked in unison and headed towards the border. Another mission, another victory. The ride back to Valais was long and tiring and by the time they landed, Cipher was almost ready to disable his onboard radio just in case he snapped through P.J's constant questioning and shot him down.
"Although we didn't discover any nuclear facilities, Excalibur is no longer a threat." The Lieutenant General told the grinning Crow Team and the quiet Galm Team. "This can be considered a substantial victory for our side."
He looked directly at the Galm Team at the back of the room and spoke to them. "Head Operations has recognised you as 'an indispensable component in this war,'" He quoted. "And expresses their upmost gratitude and respect."
Foulke nudged Cipher and spoke quietly. "We're starting to make our mark in this war."
"That's never a good sign when mercenaries become more valued than the Air Force." He replied.
"Maybe it's time we left." Foulke posed the question.
Cipher thought. "Not just yet."